A Review By: Amelia
Fantasy has always been a weird genre for me in that I’d
never given it a chance before declaring that I didn’t like it. It’s the only
genre I’ve ever done that with. I suppose it’s because I’d given
science-fiction a big chance to win me over but it never did so I just assumed
that fantasy couldn’t either. Well, I was wrong. Recently I’ve gotten into
fantasy in a huge way and all it took was watching the first Lord of the Rings
movie! Who would have thought it? Anyways, before my sudden and unexpected
passion for fantasy I read The Two
Princesses of Bamarre, a fantasy novel aimed at pre/young teenagers (I did
read it in that age group) and surprisingly, I really liked it!
Princess Meryl is brave and adventurous and dreams of
fighting dragons and protecting her kingdom Bamarre. Her sister, Princess
Addie, is the complete opposite and is shy and fearful and content to stay
within the safety of the castle walls. The one thing the sisters have in common
is their unwavering love for each other. Bamarre is a safe place for the
sisters to play their games of imagination but an illness that no one is immune
to stalks the hallways and alleys of the kingdom and, one day not unlike all
the other days in the castle, Meryl catches the Gray Death and is left fatally
ill. To save her sister, meek Princess Addie must find the courage within
herself and set out on a dangerous quest to save her sister’s life. Addie’s
journey is filled with dragons, magic, danger, and possibly even death, but
time will run out soon enough and she must overcome it all.
The author of this epic fantasy tale is Gail Carson Levine.
Levine grew up in New York City and began writing seriously in 1987. Her first
book for children, Ella Enchanted,
was a 1998 Newbery Honor Book. Levine's other books include Fairest; Dave at Night, (an ALA Notable Book and Best Book for Young
Adults), The Wish, and the six Princess Tales books. She is also the
author of the nonfiction book Writing Magic:
Creating Stories That Fly and the picture book Betsy Who Cried Wolf, illustrated by Scott Nash. She’s a fantasy
writer and she definitely knows her stuff.
The characters of The
Two Princesses of Bamarre are written well, but since it is a book meant
for twelve year olds, they’re written very plainly – but not plain as in
boring. I use plain in the sense that Meryl is the strong sister and Addie is
the weak sister but then as the story develops you see the roles flip. It’s
very black and white with all the shades of grey tucked away. That’s not to say
that they’re not well written characters, they’re just very visible in their
intents and how they’re going to evolve as characters.
The best part of any fantasy story has got to be the
location and The Two Princesses of
Bamarre is no different. Bamarre is a vast realm covered by plains and
mountains and dragons’ caves. It’s also plagued by a disease called the Gray
Death, specters (which lure travelers to their deaths unless exposed),
sorcerers, ogres, dwarves, elves, gryphons, dragons, and fairies, although the
latter haven’t been seen since the realms greatest hero Drualt disappear. It’s
all pretty standard fantasy stuff but we’re living in a post-Tolkien world so
it’s bound to happen. I still found the land enchanting and exciting and just
right for the characters and the history that was introduced as the novel went
on.
So where do I stand on The
Two Princess of Bamarre? Well, since
I recently discovered my crazy strong love for fantasy I say it’s great! Am I
biased? Absolutely. But back when I read this book, I didn’t declare myself a
big fantasy fan, so considering that it still kept my attention back then
(several times actually since I reread it a few times in grade school) I’d say
it’s still pretty damn enjoyable!
My final thoughts on The
Two Princess of Bamarre are that it’s
a good little adventure book. It’s very well thought out and evenly balanced
and every time I reread it, it sparks my
imagination and leaves me longing for more stories with dragons and castles and
swords. It might seem a little dull or predictable for an older reader or one
that’s well acquainted with fantasy, but for a middle school kid or someone
wanting to just dip their toes into fantasy, it’s a great place to start.
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